Upregulation of extracellular proteins in a mouse model of Alzheimer's Disease

In Tg2576 mice that express a mutant form of human amyloid precursor protein linked to familial AD, genes involved in extracellular matrix structures and functions are transcriptionally upregulated, and genes involved in extracellular protein secretion and localization are differentially methylated in the transgenic mice. Integrative analysis found enrichment of GO terms related to memory and synaptic functionability. Our results indicate a possibility of transcriptional modulation by DNA methylation underlying AD neuropathology. Overall design: Transcriptomics and DNA methylomics were applied to brain (dorsal hippocampus and cortex) samples from ~11-month-old wild-type and Tg2576 transgenic mice